Page 38 of The Mistletoe Bluff
“Your hair is perfect.” I froze as the words passed my lips. That was meant to be an inside thought.
Maya stilled, looking at me quizzically. “What?”
I scrambled to think of a response, but the only thing that came out was, “What?”
Maya arched a brow, staring at me as if I’d lost my mind. Maybe I had.
Being around her had my heart, and mind for that matter, doing strange things.
I swallowed, gesturing down the row. “Come on, there was one down here that might be perfect.”
“Like my hair?” she taunted.
She was baiting me, but I could play along. I reached out and gently tugged her soft, blonde hair.
“Precisely. Though the tree is admittedly not as beautiful.”
A pink tint rose in Maya’s cheeks, and she looked away, avoiding my gaze.
Oliver: 1, Maya: 0
With a smug smile, I wandered down the row, searching for the tree that had caught my eye earlier. When I located it, I grabbed Maya’s hand in mine, and pulled her to the last one on the left.
At first, Maya was speechless.
“That’sthe one you want?”
I admired the wonky tree. It was slightly crooked, half of it was smooshed, and it was missing a large amount of pine needles. It was on the smaller side, too, but I didn’t mind.
“This is the one,” I confirmed.
Maya looked at all the other trees around us. “But…why?”
The corner of my mouth pulled up in a smirk. “Things don’t need to be flawless to be beautiful.”
She cocked her head, thinking through my words as if such a concept had never occurred to her.
“Some things are beautiful simply because they exist. They don’t have to try, they don’t have to work and strive and struggle. None of that means anything when they’re incredible just for the simple fact that they’re alive.”
I paused, brushing my glove over the missing needles. “Besides, sometimes you just need to give what you have a chance instead of always searching for something that might be better. You’ll never be content that way.”
Maya’s ice-blue gaze snapped to mine. “You’re a lot deeper than I expected.”
I shrugged. “Some people will surprise you if you let them.”
Her breath pooled in the cold air as she exhaled, and she shoved her hands into her coat pockets. She seemed a little unsure—whether of herself or my words, I didn’t know. Had I rendered her speechless?
Despite the steady fall of snow, the tree farm had grown busier, people milling about amongst the trees. Small children ran back and forth, hiding from their parents beneath the boughs, and Leaf’s booming laugh echoed all the way from the parking lot. We hadn’t had much of a chance for “practicing” being a couple since Leaf hijacked the first hour of our visit. All the ways I had hoped this spontaneous adventure would turn out hadn’t happened, but our fake date/Christmas spirit trip wasn’t over yet.
“So, this is the one then?” Maya asked, nodding at the special tree.
Just as I opened my mouth to answer, another voice spoke.
“How are the two lovebirds doing over here? Have you selected a tree?” Leaf asked, appearing out of nowhere.
Lovebirds? Really Leaf?
Maya sniggered under her breath, and I replied with a smile, “We have. We’ll take this one.” I pointed to the sad looking tree.
